March 5 and 6, 2016


News Clips For The Day


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/pat-conroy-author-of-the-prince-of-tides-dies-at-70/


Pat Conroy, author of "The Prince of Tides," dies at 70
CBS/AP
March 5, 2016, 12:16 AM

Photograph -- Author Pat Conroy speaks with CBS affiliate WCSC in 2009. WCSC


BEAUFORT, S.C. -- Pat Conroy, the acclaimed author of nearly a dozen bestselling books including "The Prince of Tides," died Friday. He was 70.

Todd Doughty, executive director of publicity at publisher Doubleday, said Conroy died Friday evening at his home in Beaufort surrounded by family and loved ones. Conroy, who announced last month that he had pancreatic cancer, was 70.

"The water is wide and he has now passed over," said his wife, novelist Cassandra Conroy, according to Doughty's statement. Funeral arrangements were pending.

Conroy announced on Facebook last month that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, CBS affiliate WCSC reported.

"With the help of the wonderful people at M.D. Anderson I intend to fight it hard," Conroy wrote."I am grateful to all my beloved readers, my friends and my family for their prayers. I owe you a novel and I intend to deliver it."

"Pat has been my beloved friend and author for 35 years, spanning his career from 'The Prince of Tides' to today," said his longtime editor and publisher, Nan A. Talese of Doubleday. "He will be cherished as one of America's favorite and bestselling writers, and I will miss him terribly," Talese said.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley was among those who paid tribute to Conroy and his work on social media.

"South Carolina lost a beloved son tonight," Haley tweeted. "Pat Conroy will be missed. We can find comfort knowing his words and love for SC will live on."


According to Doubleday, Conroy wrote 11 books, including "The Great Santini" and "The Lords of Discipline," often dealing with dysfunctional families and troubled relationships.

In a 2009 interview, Conroy told WCSC that the city of Charleston, including his years at The Citadel, had an extraordinary impact on him as a young man.

"I think the truth is, everybody I write about is part of me," Conroy said.

Often his subject matter was controversial, even to members of his own family. Conroy based the main character of "The Great Santini," Lt. Col. Wilbur "Bull" Meechum -- a tough-talking, abusive Marine fighter pilot -- on his own father.

"His family, my mother's family, him, my mother, everybody went crazy and the only thing that rescued me was a terrific movie," Conroy said. Robert Duvall was nominated for an Academy Award for playing Meechum in the 1979 film.

"The Prince of Tides" was made into a hit 1991 movie starring Nick Nolte and Barbra Streisand, who also produced and directed it. Conroy worked on the screenplay and shared an Oscar nomination, one of seven Oscar nominations it earned, including best picture.



I have read three of his books and liked them all a great deal. My favorite was The Great Santini, which was about a family problem that is entirely too prevalent in America, a physically and mentally abusive father. I know the Bible says “Honor Thy Father and Mother” but there are cases – you read about them in the news – in which either parent can be heartless and totally without love toward their children. To me, the only good thing to do is for the kid, when he gets old enough, to leave home and never go back, don’t write and don’t call.

Another sad death in today’s news is that of Nancy Reagan. To me she was truly Ronald’s “better half,” and she reared at least one Democrat – Ron Reagan, Jr. and was herself a member of our party. I always liked her as a person, and will miss her.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/student-charged-after-sharing-nude-photos-of-teacher/

Student charged after sharing nude photos of teacher
CBS/AP
March 4, 2016, 5:55 PM

Photograph -- Former Union County High School teacher Leigh Anne Arthur. WCSC
Play VIDEO -- Teacher resigns over leaked nude photos


UNION, S.C. -- Authorities say a high school student who went through his teacher's cellphone, found a nude picture of her and posted it online has been charged with a computer crime and voyeurism.

Chief Sam White of the Public Safety Department in northwestern South Carolina said the 16-year-old was taken into custody at Union County High School on Friday.

The boy, charged as a juvenile, is being held for a hearing in family court. His name was not made public.

After Friday's arrest, the teacher, Leigh Anne Arthur told CBS affiliate WSPA she was "relieved and proud they are holding him accountable and responsible for his actions. When you're 16 just being sorry for something of this severity is not enough anymore."

WSPA reported the incident took place on February 18 at Union County High School.

"He opened up my gallery for my pictures and he found inappropriate pictures of myself and he took pictures from his cell phone of that and then he told the whole class that he would send them to whoever wanted them," Arthur told WSPA earlier this week.

Arthur said she took a nude selfie to share with her husband for Valentine's Day, and that the student warned her that something bad was coming.

"The student who actually took my phone and took pictures turned around and told me your day of reckoning is coming," she said.

Since the incident, Arthur said four photos taken from her phone were printed out and put in her mailbox. She claimed there was a message threatening her and her sons on the back of one photo.

She resigned earlier this week, claiming she was pressured to do so by the school district. Arthur said according to district policy, the student should have been expelled.

"The whole premise of my privacy being invaded his being ignored and that's what's wrong," she said.

Superintendent David Eubanks has said Arthur was to blame for leaving students unattended during a four-minute break between classes and that the school was concerned she could be contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Eubanks released a statement Friday reiterating his belief that Arthur was at fault and claiming that she "has used the media to transmit false information obviously intended for the purpose of deflecting the incident totally to students."

"We do know that her failure to properly supervise students entrusted to her care will negatively impact the lives of students and their parents," Eubanks said.

As of Friday afternoon, more than 11,000 people had signed an online petition calling for Arthur to be reinstated.



“Chief Sam White of the Public Safety Department in northwestern South Carolina said the 16-year-old was taken into custody at Union County High School on Friday. The boy, charged as a juvenile, is being held for a hearing in family court. His name was not made public. …. When you're 16 just being sorry for something of this severity is not enough anymore." …. Arthur said she took a nude selfie to share with her husband for Valentine's Day, and that the student warned her that something bad was coming. "The student who actually took my phone and took pictures turned around and told me your day of reckoning is coming," she said. Since the incident, Arthur said four photos taken from her phone were printed out and put in her mailbox. She claimed there was a message threatening her and her sons on the back of one photo. She resigned earlier this week, claiming she was pressured to do so by the school district. …. As of Friday afternoon, more than 11,000 people had signed an online petition calling for Arthur to be reinstated.


I’m delighted to see that 11,000 citizens have signed a petition backing her position and demanding that she be reinstated. I agree with the school that she was careless with her cell phone which shouldn’t have been on the desk at all, that she didn’t exercise proper control over the kids, and shouldn't have had any nude or semi-nude photos in her cell phone, but I disagree with the modern idea that sixteen year-olds are not fully responsible for what they do, unless of course they are mentally or intellectually "challenged." There is a lack of good parenting and basic morality these days, which I think if responsible for most things like this. Sixteen year-olds are deemed to be of age in most states to participate in sex and/or marry, they are almost of age to vote and they can be charged with crimes such as murder. Certainly the young man should be expelled if he wasn’t, but in addition he shouldn’t be in juvenile court for an adult level crime – stalking, cyber crime, and threatening the teacher. That 16 year-old isn’t “a boy,” anymore.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/60-minutes-preview-prime-minister-trudeau/

Trudeau to U.S.: Pay more attention to the world
What do Canadians not like about the U.S? Lara Logan asks Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and gets a surprisingly candid response
Mar 03, 2016

PREVIEW: PRIME MINISTER TRUDEAU

Young and liberal, Canada's new prime minister snatched victory from conservative politicians last fall partially by promising to welcome Syrian refugees. He defends his program that brought 25,000 Syrians into Canada and discusses his life and famous family -- often compared to the Kennedys in the U.S. -- in a candid profile conducted by Lara Logan. The story will be broadcast on 60 Minutes Sunday, March 6 at 7 p.m.ET/PT -- four days before Trudeau visits Barack Obama for the first U.S. state dinner with a Canadian leader in nearly 20 years.

Asked by Logan what Canadians do not like about the U.S., Trudeau replies that Americans should pay more attention to the world, "...an awareness of what's going on in the rest of the world I think is what many Canadians would hope for Americans... I think we sometimes like to think that, you know, Americans will pay attention to us from time to time, too."

Trudeau, the son of former Canadian PM and progressive lion Pierre Trudeau, believes letting in 25,000 Syrians chosen by his agents after screening is smart, safe and the Canadian thing to do. But there is a risk. "Every time a tourist or an immigrant or refugee shows up in another country, there is a security risk," he tells Logan. "I am more than comfortable that...accepting 25,000 Syrian refugees does right by both the safety of Canadians and by the values that define us as a nation." Even if one of those refugees commits a terrorist act, says the prime minister in response to Logan's follow-up question, "Ultimately being open and respectful towards each other is a much more powerful a way to diffuse hatred and anger than...big walls and oppressive policies."

The new prime minister is 44 and has been in politics for just eight years. He did many things not usually connected with elective office before pursuing politics. "I was a snowboard instructor, I was a bouncer in a nightclub, I was a whitewater river guide...I worked as a teacher," says Trudeau. He tells Logan he makes no apologies for those experiences and won't be defined by his enemies' criticism of them or his youth, so he ignores such critics.

Trudeau stunned the country by coming from last in the polls and delivering a victory for his party after its worst defeat in the last elections -- an historic achievement. He also raised eyebrows by removing his military's six warplanes from the war on ISIS led by his country's greatest ally, the U.S. But that was really a move to more deeply engage Canada in the war on terror he says, by doubling the number of advisors in the war zone. "There's a lot of countries that do very well dropping bombs. There are other things that Canada actually does better than most other countries. And one of them is training people on the ground," says Trudeau.



" Asked by Logan what Canadians do not like about the U.S., Trudeau replies that Americans should pay more attention to the world, "...an awareness of what's going on in the rest of the world I think is what many Canadians would hope for Americans... I think we sometimes like to think that, you know, Americans will pay attention to us from time to time, too." …. Even if one of those refugees commits a terrorist act, says the prime minister in response to Logan's follow-up question, "Ultimately being open and respectful towards each other is a much more powerful a way to diffuse hatred and anger than...big walls and oppressive policies." …. "I was a snowboard instructor, I was a bouncer in a nightclub, I was a whitewater river guide...I worked as a teacher," says Trudeau. He tells Logan he makes no apologies for those experiences and won't be defined by his enemies' criticism of them or his youth, so he ignores such critics.” …. He also raised eyebrows by removing his military's six warplanes from the war on ISIS led by his country's greatest ally, the U.S. But that was really a move to more deeply engage Canada in the war on terror he says, by doubling the number of advisors in the war zone.”


I, also, wish we as a government would pay more attention to Canada, because they are allies and a very similar culture. They are undeniably “one of the good guys,” on the world scene. We should emulate their social policies. Canada is the nation I have considered going to if a rightwing government does succeed in taking over here.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/muslim-student-arrested-california-donald-trump-threat-us-election-2016/

Student arrested after Trump threat makes deal with feds
AP March 4, 2016, 3:28 PM

Photograph -- This undated photo provided by Ohoud Ali Mohamed Nasr El Sayed shows her brother, Emadeldin, an Egyptian aviation student in the Los Angeles area. OHOUD ALI MOHAMED NASR EL SAYED VIA AP
Photograph -- This undated combination of photos provided by the FBI, left, and the California Department of Motor Vehicles shows Tashfeen Malik, left, and Syed Farook. FBI, LEFT, AND CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES VIA AP


LOS ANGELES -- An Egyptian flight student who was arrested after he wrote on his Facebook page that he would be willing to serve a life sentence for killing Donald Trump agreed Friday to leave the United States by July.

Immigration authorities will allow Emadeldin Elsayed, 23, to return home voluntarily instead of deporting him, as long as he departs by July 5. Elsayed has not been charged with a crime but had his visa revoked by the State Department and is being held at a Southern California jail.

His lawyer, Hani Bushra, told Immigration Judge Kevin Riley in Los Angeles that he may seek another bond hearing for the aspiring pilot from Cairo because he believes Elsayed's detention is illegal.

Bushra said after the hearing that he understands why the Feb. 3 Facebook post led to his client being investigated. But in the absence of criminal charges, Elsayed should be freed, the attorney said.

"He's being detained, I think, primarily because he's a Muslim and he's a Middle Easterner," Bushra said, adding that social media sites are teeming with similar comments. "This kid is going to become a poster boy for hating America."

Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Elsayed at his Los Angeles-area flight school on Feb. 12, eight days after the Secret Service interviewed him about his post on the Republican presidential front-runner.

U.S. officials often use immigration laws to quickly remove people from the country who are suspected of crimes rather than drag out a lengthy prosecution, said Claude Arnold, a recently retired special agent in charge of ICE's homeland security investigations in Los Angeles.

"It accomplishes the same goal: You neutralize the potential threat," Arnold said, adding that the goal is to protect Trump and public safety.

Threatening a presidential candidate is a crime, regardless of a person's immigration status, Arnold said.

"If you are a guest, you are more vulnerable if you do something stupid like that," he said.

Elsayed said in a phone interview earlier this week that Trump's comments about Muslims angered him, but he never intended to hurt anyone.

Trump has used especially tough talk on immigration during his campaign. He has vowed to build a wall along the entire Mexican border and called for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the U.S.

Elsayed said the agent who interviewed him mentioned last year's shooting rampage by a Muslim couple in San Bernardino and the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, which were carried out by Muslims who had sought flight training in the United States.

Elsayed said he would seek a refund of some of the $65,000 he spent to pursue his pilot's license and try to get it elsewhere.

Immigration authorities said the flight school tipped off investigators to Elsayed's Facebook post, Bushra said.

Alex Khatib, owner of Universal Air Academy, said he was not aware of the case until federal agents showed up to interview and later detain Elsayed.


“Bushra said after the hearing that he understands why the Feb. 3 Facebook post led to his client being investigated. But in the absence of criminal charges, Elsayed should be freed, the attorney said. …. U.S. officials often use immigration laws to quickly remove people from the country who are suspected of crimes rather than drag out a lengthy prosecution, said Claude Arnold, a recently retired special agent in charge of ICE's homeland security investigations in Los Angeles. "It accomplishes the same goal: You neutralize the potential threat," Arnold said, adding that the goal is to protect Trump and public safety. …. Immigration authorities said the flight school tipped off investigators to Elsayed's Facebook post, Bushra said. Alex Khatib, owner of Universal Air Academy, said he was not aware of the case until federal agents showed up to interview and later detain Elsayed.”


The connection between Middle Eastern names and flights schools hasn’t yet disappeared from the public mind in this country, and as the article says, “guests” in the US are not as well protected against “the Feds” as are American citizens for the sometimes outrageous things they say. The lawyer’s statement that it was just an immature act on Bushra’s part is not going to convince many people that it was harmless. Most of the people going to join ISIS are young, immature and naïve, but they are still dangerous.



http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/03/04/469237111/peanut-mush-in-infancy-cuts-allergy-risk-new-study-adds-to-evidence

Peanut Mush In Infancy Cuts Allergy Risk. New Study Adds To Evidence
ALLISON AUBREY
Updated March 4, 20168:03 PM ET
Published March 4, 20165:49 PM ET

Photograph -- A second big study affirms new thinking: Exposing high-risk kids to peanuts beginning in infancy greatly reduces the chance of developing a peanut allergy. And this peanut tolerance holds up as kids get older.
iStockphoto


Parenting can be an angst-ridden journey.

And one bump along the road is that horrible feeling that comes over you when you see your baby break out in hives after eating a particular food – say, peanuts — for the first time. (One of my three kids gave me that kind of scare.)

The concern is real. Between 1997 and 2008, the incidence of peanut and tree nut allergies nearly tripled, according to one published study.

Now, there's a growing consensus about how to prevent peanut allergies in kids who are at high risk. This includes children with a strong family history of food allergies and those with eczema.

Last year, a landmark study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that high-risk babies who were fed a soupy, peanut-butter mush (starting between 4 and 11 months of age) were about 80 percent less likely to develop a peanut allergy by age 5, compared with kids who were not exposed.

"Giving peanuts very early on actually protected them from developing a peanut allergy," says Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Previously, parents of high-risk kids had been advised to delay the introduction of peanuts.

Now, a new follow-up study involving the same group of children adds to the evidence that, contrary to previous advice, early exposure can be beneficial.

Researchers followed the kids for one additional year. The kids were between 5 and 6 years old during this follow-up period. It turned out, these high-risk kids' tolerance to peanuts held up even if they stopped eating peanuts.

"A 12-month period of peanut avoidance was not associated with an increase in the prevalence of peanut allergy," the authors write in the paper.

In a landmark new study, researchers found that babies who consumed the equivalent of about 4 heaping teaspoons of peanut butter each week, starting when they were between 4 and 11 months old, were about 80 percent less likely to develop a peanut allergy by age 5. To avoid a choking hazard, doctors say kids should be fed peanuts mixed in other foods, not peanuts or globs of peanut butter.

THE SALT
Feeding Babies Foods With Peanuts Appears To Prevent Allergies

This is an important finding, because it wasn't known whether the kids would need to maintain regular weekly consumption of peanuts in order to stave off developing an allergy.

"This new study is great because ... it looks like the benefit [of early exposure] is essentially permanent," says Scott Sicherer, a pediatric immunologist and allergy specialist at Mount Sinai Hospital. Immunologists will continue to study this.

Sicherer has helped develop new interim guidance based on the emerging evidence of the benefits of early, rather than delayed, introduction of peanut.

"There is now scientific evidence that health care providers should recommend introducing peanut-containing products into the diets of "high-risk" infants early on in life (between 4 and 11 months of age)," the consensus guidance states.

But that doesn't mean all parents should just rush in with the peanut mush. The guidance recommends that "infants with eczema or egg allergy in the first 4 to 6 months of life might benefit from evaluation by an allergist" — before they're introduced to peanut-based foods.

The evidence from the two studies together represents an important step forward in immunology, says Anthony Fauci. "It's a very important proof of concept," Fauci says.

And he says it's possible that early exposure will turn out to be a successful strategy to prevent other allergies as well.



"Giving peanuts very early on actually protected them from developing a peanut allergy," says Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Previously, parents of high-risk kids had been advised to delay the introduction of peanuts.”


We in the Maness household grew up eating anything and everything, and that is not only more enjoyable, but good for our mental health. It is one of my personal philosophies that the “helicopter parent” phenomenon is responsible for a number of bad things, including a broad scope lack of self-confidence and unwillingness to try new things. That may make kids be socially exclusive, finicky, and timid about defending themselves or others when it is needed. “Americans” are supposed to protect the kid being bullied rather than standing by in passive silence and watching. Americans should work to make friends across the color lines, think beyond “the crowd’s” views and study hard. If they won’t eat anything but hot dogs, how will they grow up to be healthy and strong? I’m really glad to see this article, which shows “the Feds” championing a logical scientific conclusion in the face of a popular medical prejudice.


TRUMP, YET AGAIN

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/better-business-bureau-republican-debate-fax-donald-trump-campaign-election-2016/

Better Business Bureau denies debate night "fax" to Trump
By REENA FLORES CBS NEWS
March 5, 2016, 3:06 PM

Photograph -- Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump walks across the stage alone during a commercial break at the U.S. Republican presidential candidates debate in Detroit, Michigan, March 3, 2016. REUTERS
Play VIDEO -- Trump "University" attack ad labels Donald Trump fraud


The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is disputing a report that it had provided Donald Trump's campaign with a "fax" of Trump University ratings during a commercial break for the Fox News Republican debate on Thursday.

The Independent Journal Review posted a video to Twitter showing Trump handing a piece of paper to debate moderators during the break:

Trump can be heard on the recording saying, "Better Business Bureau just sent it...this just came in."

But the BBB said they were not the source of the fax.

On Friday, the organization said this: "A video released by Independent Journal implies that BBB sent a fax in the middle of last night's Republican debate, which we did not. The BBB Business Review of Trump Entrepreneur Initiative (formerly Trump University) has shown 'No Rating' continually since September 2015. The photo tweeted out after the debate last night did not show the current BBB Business Review or the current rating."

The statement comes amid an ongoing controversy over the now-defunct Trump University, which is currently embroiled in a civil lawsuit, and its previous BBB ratings.

On Thursday's debate stage, Trump said of his school, "We have a 98 percent approval rating, we have an 'A' from the Better Business Bureau, and people like it."

Debate moderator and Fox News host Megyn Kelly responded that "the rating from the BBB was a D-minus, and it was a result of a number of complaints they received."

Trump later claimed the rating was elevated to an "A."

According to the BBB statement, "Over the years, the company's BBB rating has fluctuated between an A+ and a D-. At this time, the status is 'No Rating' because the company is believed to be out of business."

The BBB's refuting claim is just one of the problems to crop up out of Trump's performance on the debate stage Thursday.

A CNN report filed Saturday charged Trump with breaking Fox News' debate rules, citing sources from rival campaigns and the cable network.

According to CNN, Trump consulted with campaign manager Corey Lewandowski during the first commercial break Thursday. That contact would have violated Fox News' stated debate rules, which prohibit any contact between the candidate and their campaign.

Trump's campaign has not responded to a request for comment about the CNN report.


“Acording to CNN, Trump consulted with campaign manager Corey Lewandowski during the first commercial break Thursday. That contact would have violated Fox News' stated debate rules, which prohibit any contact between the candidate and their campaign. Trump's campaign has not responded to a request for comment about the CNN report. …. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is disputing a report that it had provided Donald Trump's campaign with a "fax" of Trump University ratings during a commercial break for the Fox News Republican debate on Thursday. The Independent Journal Review posted a video to Twitter showing Trump handing a piece of paper to debate moderators during the break: Trump can be heard on the recording saying, "Better Business Bureau just sent it...this just came in." But the BBB said they were not the source of the fax. …. According to CNN, Trump consulted with campaign manager Corey Lewandowski during the first commercial break Thursday. That contact would have violated Fox News' stated debate rules, which prohibit any contact between the candidate and their campaign. Trump's campaign has not responded to a request for comment about the CNN report.”


Is it possible that Trump is not merely an egomaniac, but a pathological liar as well? He lies when it isn’t necessary and doesn’t help his cause. I do believe that many of his avid followers will drop off if stories like this keep appearing. I hope the Republicans will go to a brokered convention and get rid of this guy, as some are threatening.


CANDIDATES AND TAXES

Americans hate taxes, but we love the Social Security and Medicare systems. Most of us recognize that helping to feed the very poor, provide housing and other basic necessities are good things, and a free public education is also basic to a decent society. Here are the analyses of candidates’ proposals to finance their plans, for your reading.


http://injo.com/

Independent Journal
Hold on to Your Hat and See Exactly How Much of Your Paycheck Bernie Sanders Thinks the Gov’t Should Take
By Katie LaPotin March 5, 2016


Prepare to see the size of your paycheck shrink in 2017 if Bernie Sanders is elected President of the United States.

A new analysis of the Democratic presidential candidate’s tax plan found that the self-professed socialist would raise federal tax revenue by 34% and cut the after-tax incomes of the wealthiest households in the U.S. in half — all to fund his big-government proposals like universal healthcare and free college tuition.

The Tax Policy Center, which conducted the analysis, found that under a Sanders’ administration:
•The total amount of federal taxes collected would increase by $15.3 trillion over the next decade;
•The top 0.1% of earners would be taxed an average federal rate of 63.7% in 2017 – up from 34.2% in 2016; and
•The middle 20% of American households would see their taxes go up $4,692 in 2017 – resulting in a net loss of 8.5% of their after-tax income.

Leonard Burman, the Tax Policy Center’s director and a former Treasury Department official under President Bill Clinton, told The Wall Street Journal:


“Sanders is clearly betting that people are willing to pay for his expansive new welfare state. There’s a giant tax increase, mostly on the rich, but everyone would pay more.”

Warren Gunnels, the director of policy for Sanders’ presidential campaign, issued a scathing attack on the Center’s analysis Friday evening.

He wrote, in part:

“[T]he Tax Policy Center chose to analyze Sanders’ tax plan in a vacuum without taking into account the savings the American people would gain under his Medicare-for-all plan. That is misleading.

Not only did the Tax Policy Center fail to estimate the savings the American people will gain under Medicare-for-all, they also fail to count the economic gains that would be achieved by Sanders’ plan to rebuild the middle class. …

The reality is that Sanders’ plans will make our tax system more progressive and will make the investments that are key to our future prosperity.”

The Tax Policy Center has now conducted analysis of the tax plans for five of the six remaining 2016 presidential candidates, using a bipartisan panel of reviewers to examine the plans.

Here’s what they found in a nutshell, courtesy of Mother Jones:

Image Credit: Screenshot -- Comparisons by Mother Jones of economic proposals from between Rubio, Trump, Cruz, Clinton and Sanders.

While the WSJ notes that the economists tasked with reviewing the tax plans of the various candidates running for president are “generally skeptical” that the tax changes can prompt major economic responses, those on the Tax Policy Center’s panel did not feel this way about Sanders’ proposal, writing:


“The proposed tax changes on both labor and capital income are very large compared with any tax policy changes since World War II, so the empirical evidence of relatively small effects cited earlier may not apply.

The lack of prior historical experience for changes of this magnitude makes the macroeconomic effects of Sanders’s plan especially uncertain, but there is a risk that the very large tax increases could significantly weaken the U.S. economy.”

Whether or not Sanders has the opportunity to enact his drastic tax proposals on the American public next year remains to be seen, however.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has a substantial lead over Sanders in the current delegate count. She has also gained significant ground over him nationally in two recent polls, and is ahead in several states set to vote in the next two weeks — including delegate-rich Florida, Ohio and Michigan.


http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum

Tax Plan Showdown: Now We Have Bernie Sanders Too
By Kevin Drum
Saturday, March 5, 2016


And now we are five. The Tax Policy Center has analyzed Bernie Sanders' tax plan, and we now have data for everyone still running except John Kasich, who hasn't produced any tax proposals yet. The full reports are here: Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Hillary Clinton, and Sanders. Click the links for details. Or just look at the charts below for the nickel summary.

As before, the Republican plans are all the same: a tiny tax cut for the middle class as a sop to distract them from the enormous payday they give to the rich, and a massive hole in the deficit.

On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton's plan is fairly modest. It leaves the middle class alone and taxes the rich a little more. Once her domestic proposals are paid for, it's probably deficit neutral. Bernie Sanders is far more extreme. He's basically the mirror image of the Republicans: he'd tax the middle class moderately more and soak the hell out of the rich. This would raise a tremendous amount of money, which he'd use to pay for his health care plan and his other domestic proposals. It's impossible to say for sure how this would affect the deficit, but the evidence suggests that it would blow a pretty big hole since he plans to spend quite a bit more money than he'd raise.

So that's that. Quite a choice we have this year.


http://taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?ID=2000639

An Analysis of Senator Bernie Sanders's Tax Proposals

Leonard E. Burman, Jim Nunns, Jeff Rohaly, Joseph Rosenberg, Frank Sammartino
Published: March 04, 2016

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders proposes significant increases in federal income, payroll, business, and estate taxes, and new excise taxes on financial transactions and carbon. New revenues would pay for universal health care, education, family leave, rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure, and more. TPC estimates the tax proposals would raise $15.3 trillion over the next decade. All income groups would pay some additional tax, but most would come from high-income households, particularly those with the very highest income. His proposals would raise taxes on work, saving, and investment, in some cases to rates well beyond recent historical experience in the US.


http://taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/2000638-an-analysis-of-hillary-clintons-tax-proposals.pdf

AN ANALYSIS OF HILLARY CLINTON’S TAX PROPOSALS
Richard Auxier, Len Burman, Jim Nunns, and Jeff Rohaly
March 3, 2016

ABSTRACT

Hillary Clinton proposes raising taxes on high-income taxpayers, modifying taxation of multinational corporations, repealing fossil fuel tax incentives, and increasing estate and gift taxes. Her proposals would increase revenue by $1.1 trillion over the next decade. Nearly all of the tax increases would fall on the top 1 percent; the bottom 95 percent of taxpayers would see little or no change in their taxes. Marginal tax rates would increase, reducing incentives to work, save, and invest, and the tax code would become more complex. The analysis does not address a forthcoming proposal to cut taxes for low- and middle-income families.

The Tax Policy Center is nonpartisan. Nothing in this report should be construed as an endorsement of or opposition to any campaign or candidate. For information about the Tax Policy Center’s approach to analyzing candidates’ tax plans, please see http://election2016.taxpolicycenter.org/engagement-policy/.